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Lectures in Entrepreneurship

The Lectures series event

Lectures in Entrepreneurship is coordinated by the Center of Entrepreneruship at Westminster College and has been an extremely successful series event over the past 5 years. The Center brings in a wide variety of prominent entrepreneurs to speak, tell their stories, and share their experiences and keys to success. All of the lectures are free to the public in the BIll and Vieve Gore School of Business (click for campus map). It is also offered as an optional course for credit for all Westminster student. Everyone is invited to share in this invaluable experience.

March - April 2015: Every Wednesday, 6:00 pm & 8:20 pm, in the Gore Auditorium.

Inspiring change in people for over 25 years, Deborah Tutnauer, digs deep to help authentic entrepreneurs move away from the stories that no longer serve them while clarifying and solidifying those that really do! Deborah helps frustrated entrepreneurs get incredibly clear about meaning, purpose and expertise, then facilitates the creation of a financially sustainable and joyfully structured framework in which businesses and its’ people thrive. Coaching both privately and in groups, Deborah is also a speaker, author, event leader and consultant. Creator of the Foundation and Framework Intensive, Question Master and Leader of the Entrepreneur Business Success Club, Deborah has been called an “Architect of Magical Business and Soul Structure”.

Jonathan is a valued leader in Utah. He attended BYU for both his undergraduate and law degrees, later clerking at the Utah Supreme Court and practicing law at two international law firms. Jonathan has been a key part in Overstock.com’s impressive rise as one of the nation’s most successful and recognized online retailers; moving up through the ranks to President and CEO until moving into his current Chairman of the board position. Jonathan strives to affect positive change both locally and nationally. His efforts have been recognized by his community and multiple national magazines.

Mark Burton,

Founder, Chairman and CEO --March 25th at 8:00PM:

International Armoring Corporation (IAC)

Mark F. Burton currently serves on a number of organizational boards, he is a partner in the Utah Angel investor group, and owns numerous companies as well. He is a member of the local University’s Founder’s Circle, and sits on the University’s President Council. Mr. Burton has received numerous awards including Ernst & Young’s “Entrepreneur of the Year” and CMA’s “Financial Executive of the Year.” He has been featured in various media stories including Business Week, Newsweek, and Time Magazine among others. On top of his entrepreneurial success he is married with five children.

A Utah native, David Toledo earned a BS in Material Science & Engineering in 2010. After a year in a PhD program at Cornell he realized his heart wasn’t in it. He started to work on Power Practical, which offers portable power solutions such as The PowerPot. With no prior business background he still managed to successfully recruit a team, launch 4 Kick starter products ($750K total), gathered investments from Angel groups and Venture Capital funds, and build up Power Practical. David also appearanced on ABC’s Shark Tank where he secured a deal with Mark Cuban and had products in various retail stores like REI, Cabela’s, and more.

A Montana transplant, Caleb studied accounting at Utah Valley University. He started his first company, CupAd, back in 2008, which sold advertising to companies like Overstock.com, Zagg, and the University of Utah. In 2011, Caleb joined Power Practical and helped develop the initial strategy to bring The PowerPot to market, primarily through the use of crowdfunding. Since joining the team, Caleb has opened up distribution nationally and globally in US stores like REI, and Cabela’s as well as 14 countries internationally. He also appeared on ABC’s Shark Tank and secured a deal with Mark Cuban.

Noah Cahoon is the 14-year old CEO of Paper Box Pilots. All kids love to play in cardboard boxes; including Noah. He developed a product around this timeless activity and turned it into a successful toy company. Noah impressed the investors of ABC’s TV show Shark Tank and landed a deal with toy industry veteran Kevin O’leary. He is also an Eagle Scout, a ninth grade student and a sports lover. Noah enjoys piano and is a backcountry snowboarder. He has big plans for the future.

Brian Cahoon is Noah’s father. Last year he set out to give his son some entrepreneurship skills and practical business experience. It wasn’t long before Noah’s venture literally “took off”. The ‘risk adverse’ father of four is a solutions consultant for Oracle.

Corbin is experienced in executive management, advanced business operations, sales, marketing, advertising, and training. Throughout his professional career, he has held positions in a number of public and private companies including roles as CEO, CFE, and COO. He has specialized in the development of successful growth, restructuring, sales and marketing strategies for business accounts and consumer acquisition. Additionally, Corbin has provided consultative services in the areas of strategic financial management, corporate restructuring, market development and relationship management for his business clients. Currently, he provides oversight and management for three privately held companies. He is also a board member for two organizations and has held two other former board seats.

The idea of opening a trendy, resale-clothing store for teens and young adults had been on Chelsea’s mind for awhile, but in 2009, the first Uptown Cheapskate opened its doors for business in Salt Lake City, Utah. On the day Chelsea came home from a mission in Anchorage, Alaska in 2006, she and her brother Scott Sloan initiated plans for what would be known as Uptown Cheapskate. With its chic vibe and upscale approach, this unique, environmentally friendly concept started receiving accolades from multiple sources. Chelsea went on to become the first female to win the 2012 Entrepreneur’s Organization’s Global Student Entrepreneur Award (GSEA), was named as one of Utah's 40 under 40, and received recognition in Inc. Magazine's 30 under 30 as well as the 2014 Forbes 30 under 30. Today, Scott and Chelsea have built Uptown Cheapskate into a national franchise with more than 45 locations in 19 states.

Ryan Smith co-founded Qualtrics in 2002 with the goal of making sophisticated research simple. As CEO, he has grown the company from a basement startup to one of the fastest-growing technology companies in the world. Qualtrics has more than 6,000 enterprise customers including half of the Fortune 100, 1,600 colleges and universities worldwide, and 99 of the top 100 business schools. In 2012, Qualtrics received a $70 million investment from Accel Partners and Sequoia Capital, the largest-ever joint investment by these two firms. Additional funding was secured in 2014 to support the company’s continued product innovation and rapid international expansion. Ryan was named one ofForbes’“America’s Most Promising CEOs Under 35” for 2013, is a frequent contributor to many financial and entrepreneurial focused newspapers and magazines.

Growing up in an entrepreneurial family, it was second nature for Stuart to join Qualtrics with his longtime friend Ryan in its humble basement beginnings. Stuart helped scale the company to its first 1,000 customers and hired the first 200 employees. As the company expanded its product line, Stuart led the product development for Qualtrics 360, a talent and leadership assessment platform. As chief operating officer, Stuart is responsible for hiring and recruiting while Qualtrics doubles its employee count annually. Stuart has a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University.

Jason was born and raised on the Oregon coast in the beautiful city of Coos Bay making him a huge Ducks fan. He started his first company in college at the age of 21. It was a massive success and an even bigger failure. However, the knowledge and experience he learned from this was invaluable. Since then he has started a handful of other companies with varying levels of success and is currently the President and Founder at Friendemic. Friendemic is a social media software and services company founded in 2010 and serving hundreds of clients nationally.

Dr. Rasmussen co-founded BioFire Diagnostics in 1990. He became President and CEO after BioFire was acquired by BioMérieux in January of 2014. Dr. Rasmussen is an inventor on over 20 patents in the field of real-time PCR. These patents have been licensed to Roche, BD, DuPont, Qiagen, and over 30 other molecular biology companies. Prior to BioFire Diagnostics, Dr. Rasmussen worked at the University of Utah and Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Engineering Consultants. Dr. Rasmussen has a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Utah and a B.S in Biochemistry from Utah State University

Jim Holbrook began his entrepreneurial journey over 25 years ago. With over 30 years’ experience in the plastic industry he has worked to improve efficiencies in design and manufacturing, leading to more cost effective ways to display product and reduce the plastic footprint in packaging. After growing the company steadily for 16 years, he accelerated the growth 9 years ago. Since then the company has grown 700%. Premier Plastics Inc. solidified its spot on the 5,000 Fastest Growing Companies in America list for the last 3 years, made the Utah’s Fastest Growing 100 Companies list as well, and ranked 67th in US Manufactures. His commitment to his employees and community is apparent through his efforts within Premier Plastics Inc. and community.

Nicole Lawson originally ran the bakery production side of New Grains Gluten Free Bakery while her husband handled the business side of this. However, once her husband's health began to decline she started to oversee everything. On top of everything, she is the mother to seven children. Before taking over the business she had never had a job outside of childcare. Despite this, New Grains did over $700,000 in sales last year and has 17 full time employees with much more expected potential.

Mike is the Executive Director of the Clark Center for Entrepreneurship in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University. He has extensive experience as an entrepreneur, business consultant and university professor. He is the founder and former CEO of Golden Swirl Management Company and of Northern Lights. He is also the cofounder of My New Enterprise. Mike has consulted with numerous corporations in the areas of business strategy, organization effectiveness and leadership development. Mike has held faculty positions at the University of North Carolina, Westminster College and Utah State University. He has published numerous articles in professional journals, and two books on entrepreneurship: Glorious Accidents and The Business of Heart. Mike recently completed a 4,000 cross country bicycle ride to interview 100 thriving entrepreneurs. Mike received a Ph.D. from Purdue University, and BS and MS degrees from the University of Utah.

Jay Glauser,

Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer -- April 29th at 8:00PM as well:

Jay has extensive experience producing and editing short films and documentaries. He has filmed over 100 successful entrepreneurs and created documentaries that tell their stories. He has filmed business builders across America, and in Brazil, Italy and Ghana. He has produced video training programs for universities, corporations and government agencies. Jay also has experience with his own entrepreneurial ventures. He is a founding member of two national touring bands. He has planned, promoted and managed hundreds of concerts and events throughout the United States. Jay has extensive experience with social media, street teams, radio and print media. He has created, marketed and sold thousands of units of event related merchandise. Jay received a degree in organizational communication from the University of Utah.

Stay Connected

The Lectures series event

Lectures in Entrepreneurship is coordinated by the Center of Entrepreneruship at Westminster College and has been an extremely successful series event over the past 5 years. The Center brings in a wide variety of prominent entrepreneurs to speak, tell their stories, and share their experiences and keys to success. All of the lectures are free to the public in the BIll and Vieve Gore School of Business (click for campus map). It is also offered as an optional course for credit for all Westminster student. Everyone is invited to share in this invaluable experience.

March - April 2015: Every Wednesday, 6:00 pm & 8:20 pm, in the Gore Auditorium.

Inspiring change in people for over 25 years, Deborah Tutnauer, digs deep to help authentic entrepreneurs move away from the stories that no longer serve them while clarifying and solidifying those that really do! Deborah helps frustrated entrepreneurs get incredibly clear about meaning, purpose and expertise, then facilitates the creation of a financially sustainable and joyfully structured framework in which businesses and its’ people thrive. Coaching both privately and in groups, Deborah is also a speaker, author, event leader and consultant. Creator of the Foundation and Framework Intensive, Question Master and Leader of the Entrepreneur Business Success Club, Deborah has been called an “Architect of Magical Business and Soul Structure”.

Jonathan is a valued leader in Utah. He attended BYU for both his undergraduate and law degrees, later clerking at the Utah Supreme Court and practicing law at two international law firms. Jonathan has been a key part in Overstock.com’s impressive rise as one of the nation’s most successful and recognized online retailers; moving up through the ranks to President and CEO until moving into his current Chairman of the board position. Jonathan strives to affect positive change both locally and nationally. His efforts have been recognized by his community and multiple national magazines.

Mark Burton,

Founder, Chairman and CEO --March 25th at 8:00PM:

International Armoring Corporation (IAC)

Mark F. Burton currently serves on a number of organizational boards, he is a partner in the Utah Angel investor group, and owns numerous companies as well. He is a member of the local University’s Founder’s Circle, and sits on the University’s President Council. Mr. Burton has received numerous awards including Ernst & Young’s “Entrepreneur of the Year” and CMA’s “Financial Executive of the Year.” He has been featured in various media stories including Business Week, Newsweek, and Time Magazine among others. On top of his entrepreneurial success he is married with five children.

A Utah native, David Toledo earned a BS in Material Science & Engineering in 2010. After a year in a PhD program at Cornell he realized his heart wasn’t in it. He started to work on Power Practical, which offers portable power solutions such as The PowerPot. With no prior business background he still managed to successfully recruit a team, launch 4 Kick starter products ($750K total), gathered investments from Angel groups and Venture Capital funds, and build up Power Practical. David also appearanced on ABC’s Shark Tank where he secured a deal with Mark Cuban and had products in various retail stores like REI, Cabela’s, and more.

A Montana transplant, Caleb studied accounting at Utah Valley University. He started his first company, CupAd, back in 2008, which sold advertising to companies like Overstock.com, Zagg, and the University of Utah. In 2011, Caleb joined Power Practical and helped develop the initial strategy to bring The PowerPot to market, primarily through the use of crowdfunding. Since joining the team, Caleb has opened up distribution nationally and globally in US stores like REI, and Cabela’s as well as 14 countries internationally. He also appeared on ABC’s Shark Tank and secured a deal with Mark Cuban.

Noah Cahoon is the 14-year old CEO of Paper Box Pilots. All kids love to play in cardboard boxes; including Noah. He developed a product around this timeless activity and turned it into a successful toy company. Noah impressed the investors of ABC’s TV show Shark Tank and landed a deal with toy industry veteran Kevin O’leary. He is also an Eagle Scout, a ninth grade student and a sports lover. Noah enjoys piano and is a backcountry snowboarder. He has big plans for the future.

Brian Cahoon is Noah’s father. Last year he set out to give his son some entrepreneurship skills and practical business experience. It wasn’t long before Noah’s venture literally “took off”. The ‘risk adverse’ father of four is a solutions consultant for Oracle.

Corbin is experienced in executive management, advanced business operations, sales, marketing, advertising, and training. Throughout his professional career, he has held positions in a number of public and private companies including roles as CEO, CFE, and COO. He has specialized in the development of successful growth, restructuring, sales and marketing strategies for business accounts and consumer acquisition. Additionally, Corbin has provided consultative services in the areas of strategic financial management, corporate restructuring, market development and relationship management for his business clients. Currently, he provides oversight and management for three privately held companies. He is also a board member for two organizations and has held two other former board seats.

The idea of opening a trendy, resale-clothing store for teens and young adults had been on Chelsea’s mind for awhile, but in 2009, the first Uptown Cheapskate opened its doors for business in Salt Lake City, Utah. On the day Chelsea came home from a mission in Anchorage, Alaska in 2006, she and her brother Scott Sloan initiated plans for what would be known as Uptown Cheapskate. With its chic vibe and upscale approach, this unique, environmentally friendly concept started receiving accolades from multiple sources. Chelsea went on to become the first female to win the 2012 Entrepreneur’s Organization’s Global Student Entrepreneur Award (GSEA), was named as one of Utah's 40 under 40, and received recognition in Inc. Magazine's 30 under 30 as well as the 2014 Forbes 30 under 30. Today, Scott and Chelsea have built Uptown Cheapskate into a national franchise with more than 45 locations in 19 states.

Ryan Smith co-founded Qualtrics in 2002 with the goal of making sophisticated research simple. As CEO, he has grown the company from a basement startup to one of the fastest-growing technology companies in the world. Qualtrics has more than 6,000 enterprise customers including half of the Fortune 100, 1,600 colleges and universities worldwide, and 99 of the top 100 business schools. In 2012, Qualtrics received a $70 million investment from Accel Partners and Sequoia Capital, the largest-ever joint investment by these two firms. Additional funding was secured in 2014 to support the company’s continued product innovation and rapid international expansion. Ryan was named one ofForbes’“America’s Most Promising CEOs Under 35” for 2013, is a frequent contributor to many financial and entrepreneurial focused newspapers and magazines.

Growing up in an entrepreneurial family, it was second nature for Stuart to join Qualtrics with his longtime friend Ryan in its humble basement beginnings. Stuart helped scale the company to its first 1,000 customers and hired the first 200 employees. As the company expanded its product line, Stuart led the product development for Qualtrics 360, a talent and leadership assessment platform. As chief operating officer, Stuart is responsible for hiring and recruiting while Qualtrics doubles its employee count annually. Stuart has a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University.

Jason was born and raised on the Oregon coast in the beautiful city of Coos Bay making him a huge Ducks fan. He started his first company in college at the age of 21. It was a massive success and an even bigger failure. However, the knowledge and experience he learned from this was invaluable. Since then he has started a handful of other companies with varying levels of success and is currently the President and Founder at Friendemic. Friendemic is a social media software and services company founded in 2010 and serving hundreds of clients nationally.

Dr. Rasmussen co-founded BioFire Diagnostics in 1990. He became President and CEO after BioFire was acquired by BioMérieux in January of 2014. Dr. Rasmussen is an inventor on over 20 patents in the field of real-time PCR. These patents have been licensed to Roche, BD, DuPont, Qiagen, and over 30 other molecular biology companies. Prior to BioFire Diagnostics, Dr. Rasmussen worked at the University of Utah and Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Engineering Consultants. Dr. Rasmussen has a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Utah and a B.S in Biochemistry from Utah State University

Jim Holbrook began his entrepreneurial journey over 25 years ago. With over 30 years’ experience in the plastic industry he has worked to improve efficiencies in design and manufacturing, leading to more cost effective ways to display product and reduce the plastic footprint in packaging. After growing the company steadily for 16 years, he accelerated the growth 9 years ago. Since then the company has grown 700%. Premier Plastics Inc. solidified its spot on the 5,000 Fastest Growing Companies in America list for the last 3 years, made the Utah’s Fastest Growing 100 Companies list as well, and ranked 67th in US Manufactures. His commitment to his employees and community is apparent through his efforts within Premier Plastics Inc. and community.

Nicole Lawson originally ran the bakery production side of New Grains Gluten Free Bakery while her husband handled the business side of this. However, once her husband's health began to decline she started to oversee everything. On top of everything, she is the mother to seven children. Before taking over the business she had never had a job outside of childcare. Despite this, New Grains did over $700,000 in sales last year and has 17 full time employees with much more expected potential.

Mike is the Executive Director of the Clark Center for Entrepreneurship in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University. He has extensive experience as an entrepreneur, business consultant and university professor. He is the founder and former CEO of Golden Swirl Management Company and of Northern Lights. He is also the cofounder of My New Enterprise. Mike has consulted with numerous corporations in the areas of business strategy, organization effectiveness and leadership development. Mike has held faculty positions at the University of North Carolina, Westminster College and Utah State University. He has published numerous articles in professional journals, and two books on entrepreneurship: Glorious Accidents and The Business of Heart. Mike recently completed a 4,000 cross country bicycle ride to interview 100 thriving entrepreneurs. Mike received a Ph.D. from Purdue University, and BS and MS degrees from the University of Utah.

Jay Glauser,

Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer -- April 29th at 8:00PM as well:

Jay has extensive experience producing and editing short films and documentaries. He has filmed over 100 successful entrepreneurs and created documentaries that tell their stories. He has filmed business builders across America, and in Brazil, Italy and Ghana. He has produced video training programs for universities, corporations and government agencies. Jay also has experience with his own entrepreneurial ventures. He is a founding member of two national touring bands. He has planned, promoted and managed hundreds of concerts and events throughout the United States. Jay has extensive experience with social media, street teams, radio and print media. He has created, marketed and sold thousands of units of event related merchandise. Jay received a degree in organizational communication from the University of Utah.